Despite the cancellation of the 2020 spring sports season, the boys volleyball team is still improving their skills as a team and the results are showing in their winning record.
The team currently ranks amongst the top teams in PIAA District One with their 9-5 record, trailing closely behind the neighboring Pennridge team.
According to junior Andrew Brown, the team has been able to defeat the last few teams they have faced in straight sets.
Senior Tate Kreiser believes that even the best teams in the Suburban One League (SOL) are all relatively close to them in skill.
“There is no team that is leaps and bounds better than us,” Kreiser said. “We are pretty much up there with the top talents in the league and district.”
According to senior Luke Hess, the team is more “tight-knit” than in past years.
“I think we are more of a family, like a closer group than teams in the past,” Hess said. “We all kind of beat each other up after every point and tell each other what we can work on and what we are doing well.”
Brown believes that improved attitudes on the court will help the team elevate their level of play even more.
“We want to bring the energy, and we usually can, but sometimes it feels like the energy is down,” Brown said.
Kreiser agrees, stating that the team can often defeat themselves following a number of bad plays.
“We make a lot of mental mistakes and then we get into our own head,” Kreiser said. “We’ll make a bad play and then it turns out that the next one is bad and the one after that’s bad.”
The cancellation of the 2020 has allowed the team to approach this season with a new perspective.
“COVID-19 has given us a different perspective. Our goal is to compete all season and never take a moment for granted,” coach Luke Pinto said. “I see the joy these kids have to step out on the court after questioning if they ever would again, and that is the only motivation we need.”
According to Pinto the missing season has also provided challenges to the players. “We have a super talented group here, but missing a year [has caused] a lot of gaps in experience.”
The missing season has particularly affected the younger, developing athletes on junior varsity.
“With people missing a season last year, the skill level isn’t as high as it has been in the past for the younger guys because they didn’t get that extra year to develop on JV,” Kreiser said.
According to junior Tobie Lias, the younger players on the team have continued to improve since the beginning of the season.
“There is definitely a clear progression of each player since tryouts and where they are now. I think coaching does a great job with that [they make] sure that each player knows their strengths and their weaknesses,” Lias said.